This invention relates to a method of processing a light-sensitive silver halide color photographic material (hereinafter, referred to "light-sensitive material") and a stabilizing solution. More particularly, it relates to a method of processing a light-sensitive material and a stabilizing solution that have better prevented the bluing at exposed areas of color photographic papers and also have suppressed the generation of mildew or bacteria on a processed light-sensitive material, moreover that have been improved in paper jam and the like due to incompleteness of drying and also can conduct rapid processing.
This invention further relates to a stabilizing solution and a stabilizing agent kit which are used for the light-sensitive silver halide color photographic material. More particularly, it relates to a stabilizing solution and a stabilizing agent kit, used in a single-tank stabilizing step, that have been improved in carrying performance in automatic processing machines for ultra-rapid processing.
In general, in the processing of light-sensitive materials having been imagewise exposed to light to obtain color images, a color developing step is followed by processing steps of desilvering metallic silver formed, and thereafter washing and stabilizing or washing-substitutive stabilizing.
Such development processing in color photography has been hitherto carried out in a large quantity and centralized processing system by collecting negative films in a large-scale photofinishing laboratories. This, however, causes an increase in collection and delivery cost and also requires a much longer processing time.
On the other hand, the development processing has come to require no piping for supplying and discharging washing water because of actual utilization of non-washing processing that uses no washing water. This has made it possible to carry out development processing of color photography any place having an electric source available. Moreover, the technique to make rapid the development processing has brought about a rapid progress of the scattering of processing as a result of the advent of so-called minilabs or microlabs, and it has become possible that exposed films can be processed while one waits.
Further, it has become possible to introduce the color photographic development processing into office machines such as color copying machines and video printers.
However, recently, further rapid processing has been strongly demanded. Particularly, in order to compete with a still video system, the silver salts photographic system which can conduct processing easily in home or storefront has been desired.
In such circumstance, Eastman Kodak Co. proposed on 1986 a rapid processing of color photographic papers, called Process RA-4, which is carried out with a processing time of 3 minutes, a processing temperature of 35.degree. C., where the processing time is detailed to comprise three steps of color developing for 45 seconds, bleach-fixing for 45 seconds and stabilizing for 90 seconds.
This system is an epoch making system in which the feature resides in using higher silver chloride emulsion to shorten the color developing time and bleach-fixing time to 1/2 to 1/5 as compared with conventional systems. However, it was found that this system has the following problems.
Namely, rapid processing tend to generate mildew or bacteria on the processed light-sensitive materials, to cause troubles of bluing at the exposed area on color papers, and further to cause paper jam in drying sections due to the conditions of processing circumstance of color papers.
Particularly, in the case where the processing is carried out for a shorter time than in RA-4, the above troubles tend to occur significantly.